Quote 4165
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There is an evangelical repentance which lies.—1. In a true sight and sense of sin; in a sight of it, as in itself considered as exceeding sinful in its own nature, and not merely as in its effects and consequences ruinous and destructive; not only in a sight of it in the glass of the divine law, but as that is held in the hand, and seen in the light of the blessed Spirit: and in a sight of it as contrary to the pure and holy nature of God, as well as repugnant to his will, and a breach of his law; and in a view of it as it appears in the glass of pardoning love and grace.—2. In a hearty and unfeigned sorrow for it; this sorrow for it is the rather because it is against God, and that not only as a holy and righteous Being, but as good, and gracious, and merciful, of whose goodness, both in providence and grace, the sinner is sensible; the consideration of which increases his sorrow, and makes it the more intense and hearty.
There is a legal and there is an evangelical repentance.—A legal one, which is a mere work of the law, and the effect of convictions of sin by it, which in time wear off and come to nothing; for,—1. There may be a sense of sin and an acknowledgment of it, and yet no true repentance for it, as in the cases of Pharaoh and of Judas, who both said, I have sinned; yet they had no true sense of the exceeding sinfulness of sin, nor godly sorrow for it.
There is a hypocritical repentance, such as was in the people of Israel in the wilderness, who when the wrath of God broke out against them for their sins, returned unto him, or repented, but their heart was not right with him, Psalm 78:34–37; so it is said of Judah, she hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the Lord; and of Ephraim, or the ten tribes, they return, but not to the Most High, they are like a deceitful bow, Hos. 7:16, who turned aside and dealt unfaithfully.
There is an external repentance, or an outward humiliation for sin, such as was in Ahab, which, though nothing more, it was taken notice of by the Lord, Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me? and though it lay only in rending his clothes, and putting on sackcloth, and in fasting, and in a mournful way, yet the Lord was pleased to promise that the evil threatened should not come in his days, 1 Kings 21:29. And such is the repentance Tyre and Sidon would have exercised, had they had the advantages and privileges that some cities had, where Christ taught his doctrines, and wrought miracles; and of this kind was the repentance of the Ninevites, which was also regarded of God, Matt. 11:21.
Repentance is expressed by sorrow for sin.
It is a change of the mind for the better, and which produces change of action and conduct: this, as it is expressive of true repentance, flows from the understanding being enlightened by the Spirit of God, when the sinner beholds sin in another light than he did, even as exceeding sinful; and loaths it, and abhors it and himself for it.
Some because of their sinful lusts they indulge themselves in, and their contempt of the means of light and knowledge, and the stubborn choice they make of error and falsehood, are given up to judicial blindness and hardness of heart; as many among the heathens, who because they liked not to retain God in their knowledge, were given up to a reprobate mind, or to a mind void of judgment, and so imbibed notions and performed actions not convenient
There is in many an affected ignorance, which is very criminal; they are willingly ignorant, as the apostle says of the scoffers who shall arise in the last time, or rather they are unwilling to understand what they might, they know not, nor will they understand, they walk on in darkness; they do not choose to make use of but shun the means of knowledge, and shut their eyes against all light and conviction;
Let it be observed, that while men are in a natural, unregenerate, and unrenewed state, they are destitute of divine knowledge; the time before conversion is a time of ignorance; this was not only the case of the Gentile world in general, before the gospel came unto them, but is of every particular person, Jew or Gentile
Without the knowledge of God there can be no true worship of him;https://www.monergism.com/worship-god-or-practical-religion-ebook
It is godliness which distinguishes between one who truly serves and worships God, and one that serves and worships him not.https://www.monergism.com/worship-god-or-practical-religion-ebook
if we sing his praise, it should be with melody in our hearts to the Lord; herein lies powerful godliness; and godliness is the ground-work of internal worship, and without which there can be no worshipping God aright, and therefore it deserves our first consideration.https://www.monergism.com/worship-god-or-practical-religion-ebook
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